The Time Child: One Night
by DanniFielding
Summary: "Every time I'm promised somewhere warm and sunny, we always end up somewhere dank and miserable." All Amy wanted was a lovely beach, somewhere to relax. Why didn't she just let Danni decide, he never seemed to miss when it came to her. One-off special with my OC, Danni Fielding. Probably won't make any sense unless you've read the rest of the Time Child series. 11/OC
1. Chapter 1

_Hello! Welcome to my Halloween-esque story for our Danni-Girl! I say Halloween-esque because it's going to be more Halloween adjacent rather than actually on Halloween! I'm envisioning it being 3 chapters, but then again I thought Home For Christmas would only be 2-3 and that ended up as 5, so let's see how well that goes! I've not got an update schedule for this, but I do have most of it already pre-written as it was an idea I had for a very old story I once thought of writing, so it just needs re-writing and updating for Danni!_

 _I hope you all enjoy it! Leave reviews if possible, but mainly enjoy :D_

 _~0~0~0~_

The planet Amelia had been expecting when stepping out of the TARDIS doors was a warm one. With golden sand and blue seas, and a palm tree or two if it wasn't too much trouble. She wanted a break with her husband, one that involved sunbathing and a distinct lack of running around and almost getting killed.

The planet that greeted her wasn't a warm one. There was no beach, just a cold wind that blew through tall trees that looked gloomy and dead in the dark. The shadow of what she guessed was a giant, old house loomed above the woods they were stood in, and the only light was coming from the moon that was high up in the cloud-filled sky, she thought it was a full one but it was hard to tell with the clouds that obscured it from her vision.

She was certain it was going to rain, and she was not happy.

"Every time I'm promised somewhere warm and sunny, we always end up somewhere dank and miserable." She grumbled, "I should just get Danni to decide, you never seem to miss when it's her choice."

"That's not true." Danni replied, appearing next to her, taking a step out into the dark night, "Once we were aiming for a planet where, and I quote, 'every 233 days, the sun shone on the sea and mermaids appeared'. Guess where we ended up? Glasgow."

"What's wrong with Scotland?" Amy counted.

"Nothing, but I wanted mermaids." She replied, wrapping her arms around herself to keep her warmth in. She'd only worn a tank top and pair of shorts, this definitely wasn't weather for that, "Spaceman!" She called into the TARDIS, "We're not in the right place!"

"Yes we are!" He replied, bounding out to meet the two women, "We definitely…" He trailed off, looking around and Amy's annoyance rose slightly. It was going to rain, by the look of the clouds above them.

"It looks like something out of Dracula." She retorted, "There's even an evil looking mansion in the distance!" She pointed off to the silhouette of the house above the trees, "Where's my beach, Doctor?" The Doctor didn't reply, instead took another step forwards it and Amy realised her big mistake. If she had just told him it wasn't the right place, they would have gone and he wouldn't have thought twice about it. But now there was a spooky old house in a woods and she almost feel his childish excitement, "We are _not_ going to the house." She warned.

"Let's go take a look at that house." The Doctor declared thoughtfully, like he'd not heard her. He turned to Danni, "What do you think, Danni-Girl? Boring old beach, or interesting creeping mansion?" Danni tapped on her chin a couple of times before grinning up at him. Amy groaned, she knew exactly where this was heading!

"Let me go get changed!" She cried, rushing back into the TARDIS, past a confused Rory who was in his favourite shorts and already wearing his sunglasses. He leant out of the doorway and frowned, pushing the glasses upwards.

"Where's the beach?" He asked.

 _~0~0~0~_

Now dressed in a classic blue dress, an old favourite but there was nothing wrong with that, Danni and the Doctor stood hand in hand at the bottom of a small, gravel path that led up to the crooked house. In the dark, the wood that made the grand house looked almost purple. The whole building looked like something plucked straight out of the Addams Family movies, right down to the small railings that seemed to line the very topmost roof. Suddenly Danni wondered if Amy wasn't far off with her 'Dracula' summation.

"Do you think an actual vampire lives there?" Danni asked him as the Ponds joined them on one side, Amy stood next to Danni.

"Of course not." The other red head scoffed, "Vampires aren't actually real, are they?" She turned to the Doctor for confirmation, but he still had his thoughtful frown on his face, "Doctor, tell her."

"What?" He asked, as if he hadn't heard her, "No, of course not." He reassured Danni, giving her hand a little squeeze, "I mean, of course they might, it's a big universe."

"Yeah, thanks for that Spaceman." Danni replied sardonically, "So are you actually wanting to go inside?"

"Just because the house is a bit rundown doesn't mean that whatever inside is going to be creepy." The Doctor reasoned, "They could be fixing it up, or inherited it off a long lost Aunt who never had any children of her own." He started up the path, obviously having convinced himself that there was nothing to fear, leaving the three behind.

"It's going to be vampires, isn't it?" Rory declared, "I just know it is."

"Because he seems so sure it isn't?" Danni asked in reply and he nodded, "You're definitely learning, my dear Roman. Let's go and get ourselves into a load of trouble." She marched off, trying to cling onto the fact that the Doctor wouldn't really lead them into danger if he really felt that something bad would happen to them. Of course, that wasn't always exactly the way things went in their lives. She didn't blame him, but then again he could have walked away instead of heading up towards the creepy old house. She had thought it was a good idea to begin with, but now it was starting to feel straight from a horror movie.

The Doctor was stood in front of the door, rocking on his heel with his hands clasped behind his back. He looked up at the imposing door, with its claw-shaped metal knocker. The whole thing screamed of an Earth 'Haunted House'. The others were probably right about the dangers that may lurk behind the wooden door, but he had never been able to resist a locked door. He was like a child; put something wrapped up in an exciting box, and he'll rip the top off in seconds. It had got him into a lot of trouble in the past, and no doubt it always would.

He looked down at Danni as she stopped by his side - at the very least it would give him another memory with his ginger time jumper, "Do you _actually_ think there are vampires in there?" She asked, pulling one of hands from the other, linking her fingers through it.

"I don't know." He replied, "Could be vampires. Could be a lovely house full of Catkin. Could be a bunch of murderers looking for some new people to bury under the patio." She looked at him, eyes wide, "Or, it could just be a very old house."

She narrowed her eyes for a moment, suspicious over his choice of words, "You're _trying_ to scare me." She accused.

"I am doing no such thing!" He protested, "However," he used her grip on his hand to pull her slightly closer, "if you are feeling particularly spooked..." He trailed off, a hint of a smirk on his lips and she raised an eyebrow in disbelief.

"No." Amy declared firmly as she and Rory joined them on the porch, "No snogging outside the haunted house. I strictly forbid it."

"That's nice to know." Rory murmured, "Are we doing this, then? Heading blindly into the creepy old monster house?"

"Of course not." The Doctor replied, "That's incredibly rude; we're going to knock." He raised his hand but paused as Danni raised hers. His brows furrowed slightly in confusion but she just shot him a grin in return, grabbing the bottom of the knocker. Realising this was her going into the adventure with him, he beamed back and took hold as well. Together they gave it three strong slams against the metal underneath, hopefully echoing the knock throughout the house for the owner.

There was nothing, and the pair were just about to try again when the door clicked, unlocking. They waited to see if it opened, and when it didn't the Doctor gave it a push, swinging it into the dark entrance hall.

"Anyone home?" He called, taking a step in with Danni right by his side. The moment they stepped out of the doorway to let their companions follow them in, the door swung shut behind them, slamming closed with an almighty bang. Both the Doctor and Danni spun around on the spot.

"What are you doing, Ponds?" The Doctor asked them, taking a hold of the handle, "You are not getting out of this." He held onto the handle, pulling it but the door didn't budge. He let go of Danni's hand to try with all his strength, but it just wouldn't open.

"We're not trying to!" Amy shouted from the other side, "It won't budge! What have you done?"

"What have I done?" The Doctor replied, thoroughly offended, "What makes you think I've done anything wrong? It's probably just an old lock." He took a step back, pulling out his sonic and aiming it at the door, "There, try now."

There wasn't even the sound of the handle being shook, "Nothing!" Rory replied, "What should we do?"

"Doctor?" Danni called lowly, "We're not alone." Startled, he grabbed her, pulling slightly behind him as he turned to see the man in a suit that seemingly appeared from nowhere. He was an aged gentleman, with white hair and gloved hands, the image of a grand British butler.

"Good evening." He greeted in a very stiff tone, a frown on his face.

"Oh, hello!" The Doctor greeted brightly, "Sorry for dropping in on you unexpectedly, but we landed in the woods and couldn't resist such a spooky-" Danni nudged him hard, "right, sorry, I mean unique. Such a unique house, it's like a kid in a sweet shop, isn't it?" He nodded to the door, "Do you mind letting our friends in,"

"Or us _out._ " Danni muttered.

"So we can leave you to get on with your evening?"

"I'm afraid that is not possible." The butler replied and the Doctor frowned.

"Why not?" He asked.

"They did not knock." The butler replied simply, as if it explained everything. Danni and the Doctor shared a slightly concerned look.

"Why would that matter?" Danni asked the man.

"Only those who knock may enter." He replied, "Please follow me, Miss Fielding, Doctor. The master of the house is waiting for you." The Doctor grabbed Danni, pulling her close as her heart sped up slightly.

"How do you know who we are?" The Doctor demanded, making sure that he had a firm grip on his Danni-Girl. They'd not introduced themselves, he made sure that he didn't say any of their names, so he couldn't help but wonder how he recognised them both.

"We always know who our visitors are." The butler replied with a distinct air of boredom. "Now, if you could please follow me." He turned on his heels, back straight, and headed into a room to the left of the entrance hall they were stood in.

"Are we going to follow him?" Danni asked the Doctor in a loud whisper.

"I don't think we have much of a choice." He replied, giving the door handle one last firm shake, "Ponds, go straight to the TARDIS." He called through the door in his best authoritative voice, "Do not stay, head straight there. We won't be long." The Doctor took Danni's hand in his, making sure he had a tight grip in case anything tried to take her away from him and the pair headed off to their left.

 _~0~0~0~_

" _Ponds, go straight to the TARDIS._ " The Doctor called through the door, his tone firm to make sure they knew he was being serious, "D _o not stay, head straight there. We won't be long._ " Amy sighed angrily, giving the door another firm shake but it wouldn't budge. She gave up, slamming her hand against it.

"Well, you heard him." Rory declared happily, clapping his hands together, "Let's head back." Amy turned on the spot, hands on her hips as she looked over the unkempt front yard.

"There must be another way in." She replied as if he hadn't said anything at all, "Probably a back entrance or something." She started back down the stairs, "Let's go have a look."

"Amy!" Rory protested whilst jogging slightly to catch up with her, "He told us to go back to the TARDIS."

"He and Danni are trapped in a spooky house. Do you really want to leave them in there?" She countered, "They could be in actual trouble."

Rory sighed in annoyance; she was right, of course. Still, he did hope that one day they could stay out of trouble.

"Plus, he is _not_ getting out of taking me to my beach!" Amy continued, her boots crunching the gravel underneath as she headed purposefully to the side of the building.

"Amy, we've talked about this!" Rory exclaimed and she paused, "He doesn't do this just to annoy you!"

"Do you not think that this is a little bit suspicious?" She countered, turning on the spot to face him, "Every time he asks me where to go next and I suggest a beach, we end up somewhere distinctly _not_ sunny, with no sand and no sea!"

"That doesn't mean that this time was on purpose!" Rory protested, "He wouldn't put us all at risk just so he didn't get stuck on a beach for a few hours."

"How do you know?" She argued back, "No one knows what goes on in that alien brain of his!"

"Because," Rory trailed off, "you know why! Don't make me say it!"

"Say what?" Amy snapped and he sighed, knowing exactly what her reaction was going to be.

"Because you know how much Danni likes swimming." He replied and it took a moment for Amy to realise what he was implying. Swimming meant swimwear, and her husband was right; the Doctor would never turn down an opportunity to see Danni in a bikini.

Didn't stop her being angry at the fact that Rory brought it up, "Rory!" She exclaimed, "Why the hell would you bring that up? You remember what they did on Entho!" She turned and stormed off towards the back of the house.

"I don't _want_ to!" Rory insisted as he followed her, "I don't want to ever think of them like…" He grimaced, the Doctor wasn't someone he liked the think of in any sort of… adult situations. Even though he had been with Danni the entire time they'd known the Time Lord, it still felt rather unnatural to think of him as anything but a bouncing, bounding child.

"You're the one who brought it up!" Amy retorted, coming to a stop as the sight at the back of the house caught her attention, "Woah!" Rory fell into place next to her.

"That… That is a _lot_ of graves." He commented, looking at the graveyard that seemed to stretch out in front of them. Really, it wasn't that many graves, nothing like an actual cemetery but for a house it seemed quite a lot. Beyond it was what seemed to be a large pound with some sort of dilapidated summer house and a lot more trees.

"They tend to be family graveyards, don't they?" Amy reasoned as she started to head down the slight slope to the overgrown graveyard. Already she could see that some of the stones were worn and beyond repair, with moss and grass growing over any surface it could, "Maybe we can find a name or something, find out what we're dealing with."

"You cannot be serious!" He called down to her, "Amy get back here now!"

"Oh, don't be such a wuss!" She challenged, heading into the grass and Rory rolled his eyes. What did he expect from her, really?

"I'm not a wuss." He grumbled, "At least wait for me!" He called, heading quickly down the slope after her.

 _~0~0~0~_

Danni and the Doctor followed the butler into a grand dining room. The walls were covered with a mixture of wooden panelling half way up, and dark wallpaper stretching the rest of the way up to the ceiling. There was a large dark table in the middle of the room with a man sat at the far end, illuminated only by the chandelier hanging over them all and the few candles in holders around the room. He was wearing what appeared to be a dark red robe, a glass of wine in one hand, the image of a Victorian gentleman. In front of him, in front of two of the many chairs that surrounded the table, were two more glasses with the same red liquid that Danni assumed was the same wine he was drinking.

"Master, Miss Danielle Fielding and the Doctor." The butler announced and Danni couldn't help but wonder if there really were vampires in the universe, and if they'd just stepped into their lair.

"Nice to meet you." The Doctor greeted, "We hope you don't mind us dropping in on you but your house was too good to resist."

"Of course not, we were expecting you." The man replied, waving his hand at the chairs, "Please have a seat." Danni looked up at the Doctor, but he didn't seem to move so she didn't either, keeping a tight hold on his hand.

"How were you expecting us? We weren't expecting us." The Doctor asked in return. He was quite well known, but any time they met someone who knew his Danni-Girl it put him immediately on edge.

"We always know our guests." The man replied simply, "Please, sit." The Doctor tightened his grip on Danni, put walked over. It would be best to play along until it became clear that he needed to get her out immediately. He pulled a chair out and she smiled her bright smile at him, sitting down. He chose the one to her right, between him and the Master of the House, "Wine?" The man offered but the pair shook their heads.

"We have a room on the second floor made up for you," He explained without any attempt at small talk, getting right down to business, "I hope you do not mind sharing but only a couple rooms are hospitable at the moment. You must understand, we do not get many guests and most of the rooms have fallen into disrepair."

"We don't need to spend the night, thank you." The Doctor replied firmly while trying to sound polite, "If you can just show us the exit, we will be out of your hair very quickly."

"I'm afraid that's not possible at this time. Once you have knocked, you cannot leave until you have spent the night." He explained, "It's the rules, I'm afraid."

"Well, can you at least let Amy and Rory in?" Danni asked, seeing no point in hiding their names if he already knew hers and the Doctor's, "I'm sure they're worried and waiting."

"I told them to head back to the TARDIS." The Doctor told her lowly, trying to calm her worries but she just shot him a look that told him she didn't, for one second, think they'd have done as he said. He didn't quite believe they would, either.

"Unfortunately your friends cannot enter." The man replied, "Only those who knock can enter, and no one else until they have departed."

"Well, we do not go anywhere without them." The Doctor stated firmly, the politeness dropping out of his voice, "They're under my care."

"It is just not possible, I'm afraid. Those are the rules of the house, but I assure you they will be fine until you depart in the morning," He smirked, pausing with his glass of wine against his lips, "as long as you don't try and escape of course." Next to the Doctor, Danni let out a scream of surprise and the Doctor was already turning around, ready to pull her away from whatever had attacked her. She was smiling, though, looking down in her lap where a black and white cat had taken a seat, allowing her the pleasure of petting it.

"Sorry, the cat startled me." She apologised to them both, scratching the cat behind its ears. It turned its head, pressing against her hand and she looked up at the man. She wasn't too happy about them being held captive in a creepy house, in fact it was rather terrifying but she really didn't want to let on to the creepy man that she felt that way. Or, in fact, Theta who she had learnt from experience reacted rather impulsively to her being frightened, "I do love cats. What's his name?"

"That is Maximus." The master of the house replied, "There are many other cats in the house, I'm sure you'll stumble upon them during your stay." The Doctor let over and ran his hand over the cat's back, the cat purring in reply.

"Yes Maximus, she is very loud." He replied to something unheard and Danni smacked his arm gently.

"Stop talking cat when no one else can. It's very rude." She chided him, "I'm guessing the stay is non-optional then?" She asked the man, keeping her attention on the cat in her lap. He was such a cute thing, almost completely black except for a white ear. He had curled up on her lap, obviously finding her a comfortable place to sit.

"Humphrey here will show you the way to your room." He offered as a reply and she sighed, looking up at the Doctor, who was eyeing the man suspiciously. Rightly so, but then he broke out into a grin and jumped up from his chair.

"Come on then, Danni-Girl." He declared happily and she stared at him in bewilderment at the change in his demeanour. What, now he _wanted_ to stay? She wasn't convinced, but still she carefully lifted Maximus up onto the table, where he hissed his disapproval, but curled back up into a ball once again after she gave him a farewell pet.

The Doctor took hold of her hand once again as they followed Humphrey – which Danni couldn't help but think was an incredibly Butler-type name – out of the dining room and towards the main staircase, "Why are we going along with this?" She whispered to him, hopefully so the butler didn't hear her, "Shouldn't we be, you know, running away screaming from the creepy man and his butler?!"

"How, exactly?" He whispered in reply, "They've told us we can't leave. Once we're on our own, maybe I can find us a way out."

"Fine." She grumbled, still not happy about being inside the house, especially when Rory and Amy were outside it. Everything always felt better when they were all together.

Humphrey came to a stop at the bottom of the stairs, "Your room is on the second floor. You must keep to the left, you cannot miss it." He told them dryly

"I thought you were going to show us the way?" The Doctor asked.

"That is the way." He replied shortly before giving them both a bow, "Miss Fielding, Doctor." He turned on his heel and headed back the way they came, leaving them stood at the bottom of the grand staircase.

"Well, he was rather grumpy." The Doctor stated looking upwards. The staircase seemed to lead to an open hallway which overlooked the entrance they were currently stood in which seemed to stretch equally left and right, leading to two doors.

"Of course he is. Spooky house, creepy owner. There's bound to be some sort of grumpy butler." She looked up the stairs. Even though she could see the top clearly, it felt like they stretched up into oblivion and she backed slightly away from it out of instinct, "It does seem rather dark up there though, doesn't it?"

The Doctor squeezed her hand and she looked up at his reassuring smile, seeing past it and to the nerves he was trying to hide, and smiled at him, "Onwards and upwards?" She asked and he nodded.

 _~0~0~0~_

The conclusion that Amy came to as she and her husband walked through the graveyard was that the garden was in a much worse state of disrepair compared to the house, which was not in any state to be lived in to begin with. Most of the gravestones were too old and faded to read and they had to go quite near the opposite end of the graveyard before they found anything of any use.

The graves lining the back row were obviously newer than the rest of the graves they'd come across, with newer stones and grass covering the top, "These two have been freshly dug." Rory pointed out, the two he was stood by had no grass at all growing over them.

"So people have died recently, that doesn't mean anything." Amy reasoned, bending down to read some of the other graves, "People die all the time. Look at the house, it's really old, the people who owned it probably were as well." She read the names and frowned, "Although, none of these have the same family names."

"These two were born in two completely different times." Rory replied, "Jazath Freegon, born 23rd February 54,320 died 22nd June 34,200. He wasn't even born when he died." He looked up at Amy, who at least was starting to look like she was starting to take this seriously.

"Mary Delight, died of fright 14th December 34,199." She read off one she was stood by, "That sounds like something out of a bad fairground ride."

"Jerry Singer, died alone 15th October 34,199." Rory added, "Francis Singer, died alone 16th October 34,199." He looked up at his wife, "We should head back, I don't think they're part of the family."

"Danni and the Doctor are in there." Amy replied almost frantically; it wasn't looking good for their two friends, "We need to find a way in to get them out." She turned, hurriedly heading towards the house once again.

"Amy, he knows what he's doing!" Rory argued as he followed her, "He just pretends he doesn't, but he wouldn't put Danni in danger like that!"

Amy looked over her shoulder as she stormed towards the house, "He just pretends to know what he's doing. Do I have to remind you about when we were captured by those giant wasp things?"

"In all fairness, you're the one who tried to spray the princess with insect spray." Rory pointed out as Amy tripped over a weed as it got tangled around her ankle. She yelled in surprise, falling onto one of the graves, the stone crumbling underneath her fingers.

Rory started chuckling until she looked around at him with a sharp, unimpressed look, "That wasn't me. Something's tangle around my foot." She looked down, her intentions to remove the weed that had caused her to stumble. However she froze, eyes wide at the sight of a skeletal hand wrapped around her ankle. She screamed, kicking her foot out and sending the hand, along with the forearm it was connected to, flying towards Rory, who jumped out of the way. He bent down, inspecting it closely when it didn't move from spot it had landed.

"It was probably dug up by some animal." He reasoned, "Maybe we should…" He trailed off as he stood back up again, staring back the way they came. Amy frowned in confusion.

"What is it?" She turned to see what had caused the colour to drain from her husband's face. As if by magic, one by one skeletons were appearing on each of the graves within the cemetery. Some were bright white, like the bones had been cleaned, while others were covered in dirt from the ground they'd emerged from. The most horrific ones were still covered in peeling, obviously rotting flesh that had Amy's stomach churning. However, the most worrying thing was the fact that the moment they became solid, they turned toward the couple and started heading their way.

Amy turned to her husband slowly, eyes wide and a look of terror on her face that mirrored his own. In unison they screamed and together they ran into the depths of the overgrown garden behind them.

 _~0~0~0~_

The Doctor and Danni stood at the top of the stairs, looking at both doors as they stood, hand in hand. Above them the lights shone down an eerie yellow glow, bathing them both and the dark décor in shadows that weren't really there.

"He said stay to the left." Danni told the Doctor, who had paused just before opening the door, "We should do as he said, in case they come looking for us."

"Unless they're expecting us to go left and come looking for us there instead." The Doctor reasoned in reply, although that wasn't the reason that he had paused. He'd been told to go left, but the fact that there was a right that wasn't an option for him just made it all the more tempting. His curiosity was already winning out, despite the woman's hand he held tightly in his own. He worried about her, he always worried about her, but he could still feel the rebellious side of himself pulling off to the right-hand side of the house rather than the left.

Danni watched the conflict shine in his eyes as he stared at the two doors. He was trying to pull of an air of indifference, but the fact they hadn't just headed left like they were told just said he was tempted to go right. And she knew the fact they hadn't was because she was there; if he had been on his own, or even with the Ponds, he would have just gone left. He was worried about her, but even that hadn't stopped him going directly left.

"Come on then, Spaceman." She said, deciding to take control and headed to the right side door, "Let's get this over with." He pulled her to a stop.

"Danni, it might be dangerous." He warned her lonely, "You're right, going left would be the better, safer option." She nodded, smirking slightly.

"We're in a spooky house with a creepy owner and a grumpy butler." She replied, "What's a bit of danger thrown in with that? You've shown me the stars, now show me a bit of danger."

He stared at her, amazed by how amazing she was. He knew she hadn't wanted to go that way, that she'd just wanted to get to the Ponds and go to a beach, but she was still diving in head first. She was determined to experience everything and anything she could and her adventurous shone from her. He pulled her back, but only so he could kiss her quickly, pouring everything into it for the moment their lips were joined.

"Let's go right." He declared and he took hold of the handle, giving it a firm shake when it didn't open. That had never stopped them before, however, and he quickly pulled out his screwdriver, unlocking the door with a quick buzz. It opened towards them, and they both stepped into the dark room, looking for a light switch or something. Then the door behind them slammed shut. Danni jumped, her fear of the dark causing her to cling to the Doctor, who very happily let her hold onto him tightly as he set off his screwdriver to give them some form of lighting.

" _Did I not say to stay left?_ " The voice of the butler rang out throughout the space they were in, the Doctor pulling Danni closer as he tried to see in the dark, " _Now you will never find your way out!_ "

"Perhaps you could help us!" The Doctor called up, but there was no reply. They stood in the darkness for a few more moments until the lights came back on. They were in another hallway, this time with two doors straight ahead of them.

"What do we do?" Danni asked as she blinked the light spots from her eyes that had appeared after being blinded, "Left or right?"

The Doctor glanced behind them, only to see the door they had come from had disappeared. He didn't point that out, though. Danni didn't seem to have noticed and he didn't want to worry her, even as his hearts sped up slightly at the panic he was feeling.

"We came in from the right." He replied, "Maybe we should keep the to the right?" He looked down at her for some input, because he really had no clue what to do, he just knew they had to keep going. It looked like they were in this until the bitter end; no leaving and no heading back. The chances were the same would happen every door they stepped through, so they had to be sure.

"He sounded awfully mad we didn't stay left, though." Danni pointed out, looking over the two doors warily, "I think we should go left." She looked up at him expectantly, and he knew she was expecting him to make the choice. He'd known her for so long now, watched her, gotten to know her incredibly well. He knew when she was trying to hide what she knew was coming, and when she genuinely didn't have a clue what to do. This was one of those times, so he knew it was purely down to him.

"Left it is, Danni-Girl." He declared, using her nickname to reassure her. It worked, he watched her relax just slightly. They found the door unlocked, but even the Doctor hesitated before stepping side.


	2. Chapter 2

_Nothing to say, I hope you enjoy it :)_

 _~0~0~0~_

"This way!" Amy shouted to Rory, turning down a path and into the start of the trees that formed the small wood at the back of the garden. Rory was very happy to follow her, a glance behind him showing telling him that they weren't getting away from the skeletons any time soon. The army of half decomposed creatures that was chasing them probably knew the garden a lot better than they did, considering he and Amy had never been there and the army had been buried in its soil.

The woods, however, looked like there was a chance that they extended into the one the TARDIS had originally landed in. Even if they didn't find their way back to the blue box – looking incredibly unlikely at this point – he did hope the skeletons didn't know their way around the woods.

He followed her down the path, taking a glance behind him and feeling rather glad that the skeletons hadn't seemed to notice their change in direction. Amy had spotted an overgrown but otherwise stable-looking wooden summer house and she lead Rory straight to it, opening the door and they both dove in as quickly as their legs would let them. Rory slammed the door shut and they both sat on the floor in front of it, their backs pressed against it.

"What the hell is going on?" Rory asked between his panting.

"Well, I would say we were chased by skeletons through a graveyard, but what do you think?" Amy snapped in reply. Rory didn't comment on the fact he wasn't asking about the obvious.

"It's like we're in some sort of bad B-Movie." He pointed out, and Amy nodded in agreement as she tried to catch her breath. The skeletons had appeared like ghosts, but considering the arm that had grabbed her by the ankle, they had also been rather solid as well.

She reached in her pocket, pulling out her phone and, after giving it a little wave at Rory for his approval, rang the Doctor. Rory took a moment to look around the dilapidated building. Old furniture was set up around the room, much like a conservatory. The sofa seemed to have lost a leg as it sat tilted forward on one side. The rug had a lovely green sheen on it, he decided the was probably mould. Breathing that in and getting infected with some alien lung disease is definitely something that would top off this lovely trip. He tried not to think about it, turning to his wife who still held the phone to her ear with an impatient look on her face.

Of course, it rang a few times then went straight to answer phone, "Doctor, it's Amy." She said to the empty space where the Time Lord should have been listening, "We didn't go back to the TARDIS, but you probably already know that. We were chased by some skeletons and are not trapped in a shed. Help would be nice." She hung up, pocketing her phone again instead of holding it like she wanted to in case they suddenly had to run again.

"So, we're just waiting here?" Rory asked and Amy nodded.

"Yep." She replied, although she sounded anything but okay with this idea. He was about to praise her on the fact she wasn't trying to escape and run through the skeletons when the door shook, something banging hard on it. They both scrambled up and away from the door as it became obvious that they were once again under attack.

"The furniture." Rory said, the unspoken command in his tone had Amy quickly following suit and together they went straight for the sofa. There was no talking, not even a look, they both just knew to head to the same piece of furniture first. One either end, Rory suddenly not too worried about the rug they were stood on, they pushed it front of the door. Amy turned as Rory finished pushing it flat against it, heading for the armchair which she pushed towards him, scraping painfully across the wooden floor as she did. He helped her pick it up and chucked it onto the sofa.

Soon there was a pile of furniture providing a barrier between them and the army of skeletons trying to force their way in. They both stood staring at the door, "Well, at least the windows are too high for anything to get in." Rory commented, taking a brief glance at the rectangular windows near the ceiling.

"Yeah, or anything to get out of." Amy countered and he sighed but didn't comment on her defeatist attitude. The skeletons continued to bang against the door but didn't seem to be breaking in despite the rocking of the pile keeping them out.

"So, how long until the Doctor comes for us?" He asked her and she looked back, not having an answer for him. He didn't mind, it wasn't like he had an answer to that question to reassure her with either.

"He'll come for us." She declared suddenly, "He's the Doctor, he'll save us if only to show off to Danni that he can."

Surprisingly, that reassured Rory. He'd seen what the man would do for the ginger. He'd set off what could only be described as a genocide of the Silence just for taking her away from him. The one thing he could always trust on is the Doctor making sure that his Danni-Girl always thought the best of him.

"Rory?" Amy asked after a moment's silence, "Hold my hand."

 _~0~0~0~_

Left, it seemed, was just a very long, rather dull corridor. The Doctor couldn't pretend that he wasn't a little disappointed. Poorly lit hallways with cobwebs did not make a haunted house, no matter how long it seemed to go along for.

"Hey, look." Danni cried suddenly from his side, pulling forward as she set off in a slight jog. He quickly caught up as he spotted the cat she was running towards, "He said we'd see some." She commented, sitting down on the floor. The cat immediately climbed into her crossed legs, making itself comfortable, "Oh, he's so cute."

"Yes, he rather is." He agreed, sitting next to her. If a cat calmed her down, they could take a few moments to play with it. This one was a smaller ginger one, with black specs dotted around its fur. It purred contently as Danni stroked its fur.

She stopped as her hand hit a small collar and she turned it around the cat's next, revealing a silver name tag '" _Mary Anne'"_ She read, "Oh, I am sorry, you're a girl." She scratched behind her ear and the cat turned her head into her hand, eyes closed contently.

The Doctor watched her as she played with the cat. It had felt like ages since he'd seen her, when really it had only been a few months. Each jump felt longer than the last, even if it _actually_ wasn't any longer than normal. Each one worried him that it might be the last, but at least the Ponds were always there to keep him in check, to keep him occupied while he was waiting for her to return. And she always did.

"Come along, Danni-Girl." He whispered, placing a kiss on her temple that made her flush happily, "Let's get back to the Ponds." She nodded, giving the cat one last brush for good measure before gently nudging her out of her lap.

"Be good, Mary Anne." She told the cat, who continued back down the way they had come like she didn't have a care in the world. The Doctor stood up, helping her up and taking her hand. He nodded up the hallway at the end they were heading towards.

"We've been walking down here for a while, that's the first door we've come across." He told her, meaning the door that was at the very end of the hallway, "It appears to be the only one."

"Nice to be gently lead to our doom for once, isn't it?" She replied, swinging his hand lightly between them. She was getting that feeling in the pit of her stomach, the one where she wasn't sure if they were going to get out of this alive or not. It always came if they were in an adventure she'd never watched or seen before, and sometimes in ones where she wasn't sure if they actually would make it out alive, even if she knew the episode off by heart.

"It does make a change." He agreed sincerely, actually looking pleased at the thought and she giggled.

"You are just too cute." She told him and he stopped, turning her around to face him.

"Too cute for a kiss?" He asked and she shook her head.

"Definitely not." She replied and he dipped his head, quickly brushing his lips against hers. If they weren't in such a peculiar situation, he would have continued it for longer, but he needed to get her out safe and sound. So he broke it up and opened the door, making sure they stepped into the room together.

"Oh, how beautiful." Danni whispered, looking around the grand room. The walls were lined with ceiling high mirrors, the wood that made up the rest of it much paler than the rest of the house they had seen so far. There was carved patterns decorated most of the areas that were painted white and the floor was shining under the candle light coming from the chandelier.

"Maybe this is why he's trapping guests?" The Doctor suggested, leading her further into the room, "No one to use his ballroom." Danni just shrugged, listening to the soft lilt of music that danced echoed through the otherwise empty room.

"I don't think I've ever been to a ball with you where we've not ended up running out of afterwards being chased by someone." She stated, still completely drawn to the ornate decorations on the ceiling.

"That's not true. What about when we went to go see Alexander Hamilton?" He replied. He didn't normally like to bring it up, after all he never appreciated anyone trying to _marry_ his Danni-Girl, but that had been a lovely evening up until then.

"We ran from that because you couldn't stop snogging me." She reminded him, glancing at him to see the smug look on his face, "He's the only one who danced with me then, you know?"

He frowned –that can't have been right, can it? He remembered being jealous of her dancing with Alex, who had been eyeing her up since the very beginning of the night. He had to have danced with her, right?

"Oh, well, that won't do at all." He declared, taking her hand in his and wrapping an arm around her waist, "Care to dance, Danni-Girl?"

She giggled, "I thought you'd never ask." She agreed, briefly wondering if they really should be dancing at such a time. However, as they started dancing together, stumbling and laughing as neither of them were particularly graceful, she didn't really care.

The Doctor spun her out rather vigorously, pulling her back in and catching her as she fell over her feet, "Careful!" She laughed.

"I'm always careful." He replied, dipping her purposefully. She clung to his arms, crying out in happy surprise as he did. He pulled her back up and they continued dancing once again.

"Okay, okay, we've danced." She told him, "We should stop and get out of here."

He sighed, disappointed not to have her in his arms anymore, "Okay, you're right."

A moment past and Danni frowned, "Doctor, we should stop." She told him as they continued around the room.

"Yes, we should." He agreed, brows furrowing, "So why aren't we?" Danni looked up at the ceiling, listening to the music.

"That music is starting to sound a little less dance hall and a little more 'creepy girl with a doll'." She commented. He had to agree, although maybe he would have put it a different way. It seemed more haunting than it had when they'd first entered, even though it hadn't changed in tempo or pitch. He was also starting to realise that neither of them had commented on the fact that music had been playing from nowhere, and had started dancing in the middle of a haunted house they were trying to escape from without a care.

"Theta…" Danni breathed and he looked down at the ginger woman in his arms. She wasn't paying attention to him, however, and he turned them around to see what had caught her attention. From the floor, as if they were ghosts, see-through projections of couples began rising upwards. They all danced to the music, each couple only having eyes for each other as they danced to the music. The Doctor and Danni weaved their way in and out of them as the ghosts paid them no attention.

"Are they ghosts?" Danni asked, "Like, actual ghosts?"

"No, they can't be." He dismissed, "They must be holograms, or projections, or…" He trailed off as they waltzed past a couple that caught his eyes. A rather dapper looking man holding a slightly woman with black hair, a white stripe through it. They held his attention for a fraction longer than any of the other couples.

"Or what?" Danni asked, and he pulled his attention back to her.

"We've got to stop." He told her, his eyes searching the room for something he could use to get her out of there. His eyes scanned the identical walls, "The door's gone." He realised and he watched her head move from side to side as she confirmed for herself that he was right.

"What are we going to do?" She asked, alarmed and starting to get frightened again, "This is like something out of a ghost movie!"

Again he agreed with her but didn't say. He had to keep calm for her, "Let's just stop first, then we'll work it out from there." He told her. She nodded; that sounded more like one of his usual plans.

"On the count of three?" She asked, their eyes locking as she tried to find some sort of strength from him.

"One," he started, "two, three." And with much more effort than Danni knew it should have taken, they both stopped and took a step back from each other. The music ground to a screeching halt, much like the sound of a record being forced to a stop. The ghosts all screamed in unison, turning to look at them, now glowing bright red in their anger.

"Doctor, now what?" She asked him but he didn't know. He looked around again, seeing only the mirrors on the walls.

"One of these mirrors has to be a hidden door." He declared, pulling out his screwdriver and pointing it at the wall in front of him, "Oh, I hope this works."

"And what if it doesn't?" She asked and he shrugged.

"One problem at a time." He told her before setting off. Thankfully one of the mirrors to the very far left swung open, revealing a way out. At the same time it did all the ghosts screeched in unison and headed towards them both.

"Oh, that's not good." Danni groaned, reaching out for his hand. He took it happily, yanking her over the very small space between them.

"Probably not. Run!" They both forwards, darting between the ghosts, who were swiping and screaming at them. One managed to hit Danni and she cried out, feeling the chill hit her chest and she stumbled to a stop. The Doctor spun, grabbing her close and, without thinking, lifted her up, arm under her leg. Dazed, she very happily let him carry her the rest of the way to the door, where he dropped her as carefully but as quickly as he could, pulling the door shut behind them, sonicking it once again.

His attention then turned back to Danni, who was struggling but successfully catching her breath again, "Are you okay?" He asked her and she nodded, bending over slightly.

"That-" She panted, "That was no fun at all." He laughed in relief at her typical snappy reply, pulling her close and placing a firm kiss on the crown of her head, "What the hell was that? Were we almost killed by ghosts?"

"No, of course not." He replied, taking in their surroundings. They'd appeared back in another grim hallway, but he was starting to think that they might be safer than the rooms that they led to, "We just have to find a way out. Don't worry about anything else, I'll sort it." She couldn't help the fond roll of her eyes.

"Trust you, you're the Doctor, yeah?" She asked and he poked her.

"Oi, cheeky." He replied with a tease in his voice. She was about to reply when a loud, deep chiming rang out through the hallway. She yelled, clinging to his arm with both arms as it chimed three times.

"Oh, my nerves are shot already." She grumbled, "Three chimes, that's 3am, right?" She asked.

"Maybe we'll only have to stay until dawn?" He replied, "Seems about right in a haunted house, doesn't it? Stay until the morning and you can inherit old Aunt Jemima's run down real estate." She nodded in agreement and he sighed, resigned to their fate, "Right, come on then. Let's see what else is in store for us."

"Do you think Amy and Rory are okay?" She asked him as they once again headed down the hallway, "The 'Master of the House' said that they couldn't enter, but doesn't mean they won't try."

The Doctor smiled a fond smile at the thought of his Amelia. No, he didn't think _they_ would try, but Amy definitely would, "I'm sure that as long as they're outside they'll be fine."

"I guess it's a good thing we both knocked at the same time, then." Danni commented and he looked down at the top of her head.

"What makes you say that?" He asked her curiously.

" _Only those who knock can enter._ " She repeated, recalling the Master of the House's words from before, "If either of us had knocked on our own, only they could have entered. You know I don't like you on your own."

"You know I'm fine-" He started, knowing she always worried about him when she wasn't there. He found it adorable, because he knew that she was the one that deserved the concern, not himself. She stretched over so many years, encountered such horrid things that he had failed to save her from. He was fine in his blue box with his friends until she appeared once again.

"I know, but I worry." She replied before they fell silent for a few moments, heading down yet another never-ending corridor. There was definitely a theme with this place. She guessed there was going to be a few rooms that were going to try and kill them, maybe some puzzles for them to solve. Somebody had obviously been watching too many old horror B-Movies. Dancing ghosts, a man who owned a decrepit house with lots of cats and a grumpy butler? It screamed Sunday morning movies that were no longer too scary for the viewing public.

And they were stuck wandering through them until they found an exit. Excellent.

"Let's do this properly." She declared, surprising the Doctor who had just noticed the corners at the end of the hallway. It looked like they had to choose a direction again. That was probably going to happen a lot as well.

"What do you mean?" He asked.

"I mean, we're trapped in a haunted house trying to scare us!" She replied, "We should just jump head first into this, at least then anything that happens comes because of our choices, not the man downstairs. We should do this right." She looked up at him expectantly, face set in that eager enthusiasm his companions never seemed to be able to get the hang of. She'd decided this was an adventure she wanted to be on, so she was going to enjoy it. She was so _beautiful._

"So, Danni-Girl," he started with an encouraging grin, "left or right?" She looked up at the other end of the hallway, then turned back with a smirk of her own.

"Right."

 _~0~0~0~_

The night seemed to be dragging on now they were trapped within the summer house. Both Amy and Rory had ended up sitting across the room, staring at the blocked door as they waited for either the Doctor or the army of walking skeletons to break in and get them both.

Thankfully it was a third option that seemed to win out, and slowly the banging of the bones against wood dulled down to silence. Of course, neither of them were stupid enough to think the coast was clear straight away, but after a while the silence seemed to be enticing enough for Rory to stand up.

"Careful." Amy warned him and he shot her an incredulous look she could barely see in the little bit of moonlight shining in through the high windows. She nodded, looking slightly embarrassed at suggesting he'd be anything but careful and he headed towards the door.

"I think they're gone." He declared after listening for longer than he thought was probably necessary, "We should head out and try and get back to the TARDIS."

"We need to get back to the Doctor and Danni." Amy replied firmly, "They're trapped in that house."

"The chances are that the Doctor will do something technical and alien to bring the TARDIS to him, or he will head straight to the TARDIS once he gets them out." He told her, pushing the furniture to the ground to clear their path, "Either way, he'll be with the TARDIS and we won't be. We need to get there so we don't get left behind."

Amy sighed in slight annoyance, because he was right, so she moved to his side to help him clear the door, "Don't you think it's weird, though," she started, groaning with the effort of moving the cabinet they'd put there, "that something is obviously trying to keep us apart?" They both moved it out of the way, giving them enough room to squeeze out into the woods once more.

"I do." He admitted, "But I think we should listen to it and stay split up."

"Fine." She grumbled and he knew that it was because she wanted to go on the adventure with her Raggedy Man, but that she knew that he was right, "Hang on, wait a minute." He frowned as she darted back into the summer house. The sound of her smashing something wooden came from it and as he was about to go see what she was doing, she came back out again with two chair legs of one of the chairs that had been in the room.

"What?" She asked, handing him one, "We're in a forest full of the walking dead. Don't you think we should be prepared?" She wasn't wrong, so he took one and they headed up the small path they'd followed to get to the building, "So, left or right?" Amy asked.

Rory paused for a moment, trying to work out the path they had followed in his head. They'd weaved their way through the woods, but had predominately stayed left, which meant they would be heading roughly in a circle back towards the house.

"We should stick left." He replied, "I had thought we'd be able to run around to the TARDIS, but maybe heading back to the house and back the way we came is our better option." Amy nudged him.

"Look at you getting all authoritative." She teased lightly.

"Is that a bad thing?" He asked and she shook her head.

"Definitely not." She replied, that flirtation tone in her voice that always had him really wishing they weren't in mortal danger and home instead, where he could do something about it. As it was, he straightened slightly, gaining confidence from her obvious attraction to him and headed left.

Nothing happened for a while. They jumped at every noise as it happened, snapping of twigs and rustling of leaves, yet nothing attacked them. It was hard not to be jumpy, though, when you'd been chased by skeletons that had risen from the ground, some with the rotten flesh still on their bones, eyeballs exposed, worms and maggots eating there…

Amy shuddered at the thoughts, forcing herself to focus on getting back to the house. It was one of the downsides of having such an exciting lifestyle. You saw some wonders, things everyday people couldn't even dream about, but you so some horrific things as well.

As they walked, it became apparent that the trees were slowly thinning out until they stumbled upon what had obviously been a pond at some point, but was now more of a swamp, with wet soil spreading to the edge of the wood surrounding it and patches of grass where it hasn't completely drowned the plant life.

"Look," Rory stated, stepping out into the clearing as he looked off to the left, "it's the house." Amy followed his eye line and saw house off in the distance.

"We didn't run that far away from it, did we?" She asked, amazed at how far away it looked from where they currently were.

"We were running for a while." Rory reasoned, "We just need to head that way, we'll get back eventually."

"Yeah, if we don't get ambushed again on the way." She murmured, "Do you think they're okay in there?" Amy asked her husband as they stepped over some of the more marshy land around the pond.

"Probably better than we are out here. I think it's going to start raining." Rory replied and she rolled her eyes.

"Ever the optimist, aren't you?" She scolded gently and nudged him with a smile. He couldn't help but smile back at his wife's grin but groaned as his foot landed in a rather soggy patch of mud. He pulled his foot up, shaking it in a vain attempt to get some of the moisture off it.

"Aw, it's gone right through." he moaned and Amy couldn't help but giggle at the look on his face as he settled it back down on the floor and decidedly away from the horrid wet patch he'd stood in.

Neither of them expected the ground to rumble. Rory darted over to his wife as the ground shook and rose, stretching unnaturally upwards as it formed a giant figure that loomed over them. Covered in moss and algae and looking like it was made of the marshy land they were stood on stretched over a large humanoid frame. Two dark holes made up its eyes, although Amy was sure that if it wasn't so dark they would have been able to see more. The silhouette of a fin ran from top of its head right down to its back. It absolutely stank, like old water and fish.

It pulled its arm back, roaring animalistically as it pulled a large trail of slime upwards, the long piece of goo flicking up from where Rory had just stood. It seemed to scan the area before its attention fell on the pair, who slowly began to back away.

"I think we've made it angry." Amy whispered to Rory as it roared angrily again. He reached out, grabbing her free hand, although the wooden legs seemed a bit useless now.

"Run. Run now." He told her and they spun, turning and running towards the house as the sound of the creature from the pond chasing them kept them moving.

 _~0~0~0~_

The Doctor and Danni had silently decided to open each door together, just in case the rules from the front door extended throughout the house. The first door they came to down the right hand corridor opened onto an old children's playroom. Abandoned prams and toys scattered the room, rocking horses that hadn't been rocked in decades sat still and everything was covered in a lovely layer of dust and cobwebs. Old cabinets with shelves full of toys lined the walls and separated one part of the room from the other. The Doctor pulled out his screwdriver and quickly flashed the room, checking the results with the quick scan, reading them with a bit of a pout.

"Doesn't seem to be anything here." He told her with a bit of a sulk.

"That's not a bad thing." She told him before turning around, only to find that door gone as well. She reached out, running her finger over the old, patterned wallpaper and pulling back to find a trace of dust on her fingertip, "It's like it was never there." She commented, "How do we get out?"

"The last room had a door hidden within a mirror." He replied, "There's probably a hidden exit in every room, we just have to find it." An eerie giggle rang through the air, light and young-sounding and they both stepped closer together as they looked over the area.

"That sounded like a child." The Doctor said and Danni nodded in agreement.

"Maybe the door is on the other side of the room?" She suggested instead of pointing out that little girl's laughter in horror movies never ended well for anyone, "It's sectioned off for a reason, right?" He clicked his fingers before pointing across the room, his signal to go along with her idea. Silently, hand in hand, they made their way around the cabinet, both peering around before actually stepping into the other side of the room.

"Look, two doors." Danni sighed in relief at the sight of the two exits, "I guess we're supposed to pick left or right again." Another creepy giggle echoed and they both spun around, trying to find the source.

"Did that sound closer to you?" She asked her Time Lord, who shook his head.

"No, definitely not closer." He dismissed, "It definitely did not sound like it was coming from within the room."

Danni paused for a moment, letting the Doctor's words sink in, "We should leave." She declared.

"Right now." He finished.

"Wait!" They both froze as a little girl ran out from behind the cabinet they'd walked around. She had blonde hair and wearing a pink dress. Her face was bright red, reflecting the cry that had been in her voice, and she was carrying a little doll in the same outfit she was wearing with the same blonde hair, "Can you help me?" She sobbed.

"Why, are you lost?" The Doctor asked and she nodded, wiping her eyes with the back of her hand. She can't have been more than seven, "Where did you come from?"

"I can't find my mummy." She whimpered and Danni smiled softly, feeling sorry for the little girl who was obviously very frightened, "There was something coming for me. I hid in the cabinet, but you sounded nice. Can you help me?"

"My name's Danni, and this is the Doctor." She told the girl kindly, "What's your name?"

"Rebecca." She replied, sounding a bit unsure at telling Danni who she was. Danni walked over and crouched down in front of her, making sure to keep a kind smile on her face at all times.

"Hello Rebecca." She greeted, "Do you know which way she went?"

"She went through that door." She replied, pointing at the left door, " Dolly says she went to find the man." Danni nodded, taking what Dolly said very seriously. The Doctor, on the other hand, frowned to himself. That didn't sound right, but he couldn't work out why.

"Well, can you see my friend over there?" Danni asked, nodding towards the Doctor. Rebecca looked at the Doctor then nodded, "He is a master at finding lost mummies and daddies. He once found a mummy and daddy who didn't even exist, which is quite impressive, isn't it?" Rebecca nodded again, "So, he can help you find your mummy." She stood up and held her hand out to the little girl, who took it happily.

"Will you stay with me until then?" Rebecca asked and Danni nodded.

"Of course, sweetie." She lead the little girl over to the Doctor, and with a silent exchange of words – because the Doctor still wasn't sure what was bothering him apart from the little girl who seemingly appeared from nowhere – he tried the door. It didn't budge so he gave it a large rattle, then turned the screwdriver on it.

"Well, I think we might be stuck he for a while." The Doctor declared and Danni laughed nervously, turning back to Rebecca. The little girl looked on the verge of crying, so Danni shot her another smile.

"How about we play with some of these toys?" She suggested.

"There's a rocking horse on the other side." Rebecca replied quietly and Danni started leading her towards the other side of the room.

"Well we'll play with that while the Doctor gets the door open." She declared, shooting the Doctor a pointed look. He gave them both a casual salute, letting them know he was on the job before turning back to the door. It was always bittersweet to see Danni with children, she was so good with them, but then it reminded him that she would never get to share that with anyone.

He tore his thoughts back, frowning at the door. How exactly was he supposed to open it?

Danni sat on the floor next to the rocking horse while Rebecca sat the doll on its saddle, rocking it gently as if the doll was riding it all on her own.

"So, you and your mummy must be a long way from home." Danni commented lightly, "What are you doing in the house?"

"Mummy and me got lost in the woods and I fell over and hurt myself." Rebecca replied, not looking away from her dolly, "We found this house and mummy said that they could help so we both knocked and the man gave me Dolly to feel better."

"That was nice of him." Danni told her as another giggle rang through the room. This time it was obvious it wasn't Rebecca, who had silently been moving the doll, "I wonder what that is." Danni wondered out loud.

"They're my friends." The little girl replied calmly, "But they don't really like adults. They're very silly." Danni's brows furrowed

"You're friends?"

The Doctor bent down to look at the lock on the door handle. He'd tried to right side door, but much like this one, it was locked and even the sonic screwdriver hadn't been able to budge it. It looked like he'd have to try his lock-picking skills, which he had to admit were quite rusty.

He still couldn't get the niggling out of his head that something wasn't right. The little girl had been hidden, but that was normal. Scared and hiding was something he was quite accustomed to. No, it was the girl's mother, he was sure of it.

 _Only those who knock can enter, and no one else until they have departed._

That's what the Master of the House had said, hadn't he? "Then how did we get in?" The Doctor mused to himself.

Danni smiled warily, looking around to see if she could see these 'friends' of hers. The shadows seemed to stretch more towards the ceiling, but that might just be her own nerves getting to her, "

"Our friends are around here somewhere too." Danni replied, "They're too much like adults for our liking too." She shook her head, "We will find your mummy." She promised her Rebecca, "I'm sure she's just as worried about you as you are about her. Maybe she's found our friends as well."

"We won't find them." The girl replied simply and Danni frowned.

"What makes you say that?" She asked, wondering where the sudden defeatist attitude came from in the young girl.

"Dolly." She replied, reaching out a hand to stop the horse from rocking. Danni looked at the doll again, suddenly seeing it in the doll in a new, creepier, lightly.

"What did Dolly say?" She asked slowly and the girl turned to face her, an unnatural twisted grin on her face.

"That your friends are going to burn forever," She told the ginger, "forever screaming in agony along with the other lost souls in this house." She tilted her head as the rocking horse began moving again on its own. Danni's breath caught in her throat as she watched it rock on its own, "Poor Amy and Rory, she says, doomed for all eternity by the Doctor and his Time Child."

Danni screamed, her blood running cold as the doll's head turned to face her, a smirk now spread on its features.


End file.
